This invention relates to the treatment of living tissues and/or cells by altering their interaction with charged species in their environment. More particularly, the invention relates to an electromagnetic body-treatment device for surgically non-invasive modification of the growth, repair and maintenance behavior of living tissues and cells by a specific and selective change in electrical environment.
Ryaby, et al., U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,105,017, 4,266,532 and 4,266,533 describe means for effecting surgically non-invasive direct inductive coupling to an afflicted body region, whereby one or more electric voltage and concomitant current signals conform to a highly specific pattern and have been found to develop therapeutically beneficial treatment of the afflicted region, as for example in the enhancement of repair of bone fractures, non-unions, and the like. In general, the involved treatment head or heads have involved one or more large coils, which have served well for the treatment of large-member bones, as in leg regions. And various special-purpose coil and head configurations have been disclosed for specific treatments. In general, it may be said that it has been preferred practice to employ a treatment-head configuration in which two like coils are electrically connected in flux-aiding relation and have flexibly articulated connection to enable strapped application on opposite sides of an afflicted limb, and with the coils on a common axis of magnetic-flux development through the afflicted region. However, for certain injuries, such as bone injury in the scaphoid region of the arm, it becomes very awkward, bothersome, and inconvenient to use the conventional articulated-coil technique, in that use of the arm must be severely curtailed, due primarily to treatment-head considerations.